Smart grid systems.

It might be an idea to watch this Australian Broadcasting Co video in conjunction with the text.

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 ​https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yxABosWfuus

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A lot of things are changing in the energy world and the fossil fuel energy sources of coal and oil are under extreme pressure from two directions. The first is, the addition of CO2 to the atmosphere from burning coal and oil is raising the world temperature, and, if we are to avoid disaster we need to get it under control. At the same time the new energy from solar panels and wind farms is now cheaper than coal electricity and even oil for transport is likely to be replaced by electric transport.
These changes are bringing problems to our existing energy sources as the businesses in the them have a lot invested in infrastructure and need to protect themselves from being left with a redundant asset, or, being in an industry that is side lined. A traditional coal powered electricity supply system involves, typically, a centrally located 1000 megawatt coal powered energy source and a grid network that distributes electric power over long distances to power the region. The major disadvantages of coal are that it produces massive amounts of pollution, including CO2, sulphur and other noxious gasses and also because of the size and heat of the boilers it is not a system that is easy to alter its output and often burns coal at night when power is not needed.

An overview of the different renewable energy sources shows, that solar is reliable, in that it provides power every day when the sun shines and even cloudy days can be forecast in advance. Wind provides cheap electricity, but only when the wind blows and again, windy or calm days can be forecast in advance. Geothermal is reliable and can be used for constant base load but can be switched down if needed. Hydro is also good for base load but has the big advantage that it can be used for peak load spikes and can be switched on and go from nothing to full power in a few minutes.
A modern grid system designed for the new energy sources would be divided into smaller districts and have smart switching to balance power with demand. The big difference between the old and the new systems is that the renewable energy comes from much smaller, constantly changing local sources but its big advantage is that the energy is free and that there are so many small outputs that the gains and losses balance one another out and make it a reliable system.
It’s a different kind of system but with modern monitoring and switching it is a cheaper system to provide power.

If homes providing their own energy are perceived as a threat and weakening of the existing grid, the electricity companies have alternative plans and are looking at the huge transport system, where there is a massive market available. Oil is a diminishing resource and it is a fossil fuel, full of CO2 and other pollutants, and if we are to keep the global temperature below 2C we will have to stop using it.
One way or another we will have to stop using fossil fuels and need an alternative that works.